The legendary creator of 'Doom' warns Facebook's biggest bet is 'coasting on novelty'

Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and PlayStation VR are all finally here.
Gear VR is being packed in with cell phones. The present is
made of virtual reality, and according to some, it's already got
problems.

One person who holds that opinion is John Carmack, the legendary
video game programmer who was instrumental in the creation of
"DOOM" and "Quake" back in the 1990s. Carmack left game
development to become the CTO at Oculus full-time in 2013.

At last week's Oculus Connect event, Carmack offered some
constructive criticism of the current state of VR development,
saying developers need to start being harder on themselves,
according to GamesIndustry.

"We are coasting on novelty, and the initial wonder of
being something people have never seen before," Carmack said.
"But we need to start judging ourselves. Not on a curve, but in
an absolute sense. Can you do something in VR that has the same
value, or more value, than what these other [non-VR] things have
done?"

One of the barriers to early VR adoption for some is the lack of
amazing games to play, or things to do in VR. PlayStation VR had
by far the most robust launch lineup of games, but many of
them are short "VR experiences" that don't offer as much depth or
complexity as similarly priced non-VR games.

Another barrier to enjoyment of VR right now, according to
Carmack, is load times. It's not uncommon for video games to have
loading screens that last 30 seconds or longer, but outside of
VR, players can find ways to distract themselves until that time
is up. With a VR headset on, you're stuck staring at a screen for
30 seconds.

"That's acceptable if you're going to sit down and play for
an hour....but [in VR] initial startup time really is poisonous,"
Carmack said. "An analogy I like to say is, imagine if your phone
took 30 seconds to unlock every time you wanted to use it. You'd
use it a lot less."

Carmack still believes that VR is the way of the future, as
long as developers can get past the initial novelty and create
lasting experiences.

As someone who has pioneered new 3D graphics technology and
funded an aerospace company, Carmack definitely understands how
difficult it can be for complex technology to get off the ground.
When he speaks, people are inclined to listen. With any luck, his
words will resonate with aspiring VR developers out there.